Happy Valentine's, Caboose!
by btamamura
Summary: It's Valemtime's...I mean Valentine's Day, and Caboose is missing Church. Again. Who'll help him this year? Rated for language


**Disclaimer: **_I do not own Red vs. Blue or the characters. They are the property of RoosterTeeth, etc._

**Notes: **_**A friend asked me what I had planned for Valentine's Day this year, about the same time my mind ran through thoughts of the PSAs, in particular, the V-day special. I thought **__why not? __**and wrote this little gem.**_

_**I referenced a couple of my past fics: **_**Let's Draw **_**and **_**Straws**_**. If you've read them, you'll catch the references.**_

_**The usual language warning applies, and this is just friendship; no slash at all. (Though I might write some Pastry Train - Caboose x Donut - in the near future.) Enjoy!**_

Wash had noticed Caboose was in low-spirits that day. He didn't understand why, maybe the poor guy was having another _mourn for Church_ day?

Caboose slowly ate his cereal, and drank his orange juice, all without saying a single word to Tucker or Wash. He rose from the table, dishes in hand.

"'S okay, dude, we'll take 'em," Tucker assured.

"Okay." With that sullen response, the young blond sim trooper left their tiny mess hall and returned to his room to change into his armour.

Wash turned to Tucker. "Is he alright?"

"You don't know what day it is?"

"Yeah, February fourteen. But, I don't see wh- Oh." When he first met the Blood Gulch gang, he'd been around them on February fourteen, and could remember a conversation between Caboose and Church. The awkward conversation which ended with Church screaming for Caboose to _get the fuck away from me!_. "I was right. He does miss him."

"Every year, the same thing," Tucker sighed. "I heard from Simmons and Grif they were the ones to make Caboose feel special since Church wasn't back yet."

"How did they do that?"

"Same way Church did, treated him like shit."

The former Freelancer checked to see if the other was joking. _Nope. Dead serious._

"Somehow, they started this tradition that has Caboose wishing him a happy Valentine's day, and Church would yell at him."

"_Get the fuck away from me!_, right?"

"Yeah, that. Guess you know that part."

"There's more?"

"Surely, you've noticed the large scar on his chest, right?"

He nodded. He noticed it when the shower wasn't working so they'd had to bathe under the waterfall, with boxers on mind you.

"Well, Caboose would insist on giving Church a hug or kiss or whatever, so Church would lose it, say he has something to give him, then rip his heart out of his chest. Doc would spend hours sewing it back in each time, bitching the whole time about it."

"Does Caboose actually...like being treated like crap?"

"It's not that he likes it, he's more...confused. He's certain that Church is showing affection by doing that."

He looked into his coffee. He let out a sigh, then rose to his feet. "I'll try talking to him, then."

"Don't be surprised if he starts crying because you're being nice to him," Tucker called after the older blond.

Wash stood outside Caboose's room, barely hearing a sound. Normally, he'd be hearing Caboose bumping into things after putting his helmet on backwards. But, it was silent. He knocked on the door, then opened it. "Caboose?"

The young blond sat on his bed, still in his civvies. He looked up. "Hi, Wash."

"Hey." He stepped into the room. "Something troubling you?"

"I miss Church. I want to wish him a happy Valemtime's day, and then he'll yell at me. He always does that because he cares about me too."

_Tucker was right, he is confused!_ He closed the door and approached the bed.

"Wash?"

"Yeah, Caboose?"

"Can you do what Church did? It would make me happy."

"No, and you shouldn't be happy that he did that. That is no way to show you care for someone." He sat beside him. "Why do you think that what he did is a good thing? It's abuse."

"Because, it was Church, and he only did it to me."

"Is that why it made you feel special?"

"Yeah."

_You poor, foolish kid._ "You know how Church is, but I doubt even he would claim he was showing affection by telling you to fuck off."

"And giving me my own heart."

"That too."

"Then, what is a nice thing to do for Valemtime's day?"

"Anything to show someone you care about them. A card, flowers, chocolates...kissing, hugging...stuff like that."

"Can you give someone orange juice?"

"Sure. Anything to show you care for them."

"I was going to give Church my orange juice this year. I told him he could have it when I die, but I think it would also have been a nice present."

"I'm sure it would've been."

He sighed and looked around his slightly messy room. He looked at a picture of all of his friends (and Tucker and Lopez) that he'd made when both teams drew with crayons to mark a truce (if only for a day each week). He saw a picture of a tortoise-shell cat that Wash had given him ("I already have that picture, you like cats too, right?") after he'd accidentally seen the many posters and photos of cats all over the ex-Freelancer's room. (That's another story for another time.) His eyes caught sight of a crazy straw, also from Wash, that he'd used to drink his beverages. "I haven't given you anything yet."

"What brought that on, all of a sudden?"

"You gave me that non-spiky cat picture and a whirly-twirly straw...but, I've given you nothing."

"Don't worry about it. Feeling better?"

"Kind of. I still miss Church."

"Everyone does." He rose to his feet. "We'd better get out there before Tucker decides he'd rather be with his rock today, and the Reds launch an all-out assault." Before he could leave the room so he could go to his and get into his armour, he felt something strong grip his wrist.

Caboose pulled Wash back onto the bed and, before the platinum blond could protest, pulled the older man close in a firm and friendly hug.

Wash tensed from the sudden actions, but soon relaxed and returned the embrace, albeit a little awkwardly.

"Happy Valentine's, Wash," he whispered, a smile on his lips.

"You too. Now, can you let me go?"

"Nope! You're right, this is nicer than being told to go away."

He nodded. "Yeah, it is." Maybe it was because the younger blond's smiles were infectious, but Wash couldn't hold back his own small grin.


End file.
